Women as ministers in independent Finland
Women in Finland were the first in the world to receive full political rights. Universal suffrage and the right to be a candidate in national elections were entered into law already in 1906. A year later, 19 women were elected to the first Parliament. One of them was Miina Sillanpää, who in 1926 was the first woman to become a government minister. The number of women in politics has increased steadily. A total of 88 women have served as ministers in the governments of independent Finland. Here we present them and their achievements.